Product Review: L'oreal Voluminous Million Lashes

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Hey Beauties!

Can you all believe that Christmas is only 2 weeks away? This year seemed to just pass by. Before you know it, we will be in the year 2011 very soon :) I have great things in store for 2011 for you all so stay tuned! I will make sure to start the new year off with a new bang.

I was very curious to try the new L'oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara ($7.99) so I picked up a tube at Target about 1 month ago and I have been putting this baby to the test. Before I start the review, I want to mention that I had a very unique experience with this mascara that I have never had before with any others. More on that later.

L'oreal Voluminous Million Lashes in Black

Here is some info about this mascara from L'oreal:

*Great for providing lashes with volume and definition

*Contains a no clump formula

*Brush is designed to help separate each las without clumping them

*The bottle contains a "clean sweep wiping system" that helps you get the right amount of mascara on the brush.

*Fragrance Free

*Ophthalmologist and Allergy Tested

General Observations:

First and foremost, I love the sleek, shiny gold tube. Very pretty and a refreshing change from mascara tubes that are all decked out with colors and fancy texts. Sometimes, a girl likes to keep it simple. I care more about whats on the inside than the outside. The first time I opened the mascara, I noticed that even though it stated that it was fragrance free, I did note a familiar scent to it. It smells like honey to me. Not that I mind at all, it is a non-offensive smell. I just found it a bit odd that this mascara had a honey scent to it. Am I the only one who experienced this? I guess it's OK, seeing as the majority of mascaras I have tried have a foul smell to them.

This mascara wand is of the plastic kind. I LOVE mascara wands that contain flexible plastic bristles. I find that I have more luck with these kinds of brushes as opposed to the springy/wired bristles other mascaras contain. The plastic bristles work better for me when it comes to separating and keeping my lashes clump-free.

OK-here is the really cool part about this mascara. The containment of the "clean sweep wiping system". This is a first for me that I have seen a mascara with this sort of feature. And I think it is fairly genius and brilliant! There is a "built in wiper" inside the mascara tube that literally wipes off the excess amount of mascara on the brush for you. And this feature truly does a fabulous job at that because every time I pull out the mascara brush, the bristles are excess-product free, and very clean. Love it!

Plastic flexible bristles

A closer look at the "clean sweep wiping system"

Thoughts:

I have been putting the Voluminous Million Lashes mascara to the test for about a month now-wearing it daily for long 6-7 hour school days. I tried this mascara for the first week or two, and I noticed that the formula was very watery/thin. Making it hard for the product to go on my lashes evenly and smoothly. I relied on the plastic bristles to help keep my lashes clump free. But they would still clump! This really bummed me out because I immediately thought "Oh no, I can tell I am not going to like this mascara already". But I learned that I should never judge a product so soon. Although the formula was a challenge, I still managed to work with it somehow. Then BAM! two-three weeks go by, and all of a sudden the formula felt a little thicker-still watery, but a bit thicker. The change in the formula made the mascara much more user-friendly and I was getting decent results. But I found that even so, if I apply more than 1-2 coats, my lashes would still clump up.

L'oreal Voluminous Million Lashes did provide my lashes with a good amount of length, but when it came to the volumizing factor, I did not notice much volume on my lashes. They just looked like my lashes but longer. As for lasting power, this mascara did not last all day on me. I noticed tiny specks of flakes and smudges under my eyes by the end of the day. On a positive note, Voluminous Million Lashes does remove easily with makeup remover.

Pros:

1. Non-offensive smell

2. Affordable

3. Like the sleek packaging

4. Provides my lashes with a nice length

5. Removes easily with makeup remover

6. Love the "built-in wiper" that ensures you get a perfect amount of mascara product on the brush every time

Cons:

1. Clumps on my lashes

2. Does not give me much volume

3. Formula is a bit wet and runny at first, but may thicken a little later on

4. Smudges and flakes by the end of the day

I am so bummed that this mascara did not work out for me-used alone. I found out that I actually can use this mascara in such a way that will work for me and my lashes. I pair it with my HG drugstore mascara, Cover Girl Lash Blast! I apply 1-2 coats of Lash Blast for achieving volume, then I follow with one coat of Voluminous Million Lashes for achieving length. And this works out for me really well.

What do you all think of Voluminous Million Lashes? Have any of you tried it? Love it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments section, I would love to know.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with any of the companies mentioned above. I purchased this product for my personal use.